Steel Flames
by TMNT-Queen
Summary: "If you're listening to this recording, my brothers and I are probably dead. Odds are, you don't know the real story behind everything. I'm here to tell you the absolute and utter truth, no holds barred. My name is Hamato Donatello. And this is what really happened the night our world went up in flames." (Rated T just to be safe.)
1. 1 - Introduction

A/N: As you can probably tell, I've decided to write a novel based on a 100 prompts/themes challenge. I found an original list that someone had located on DA, and that's the one I'm going to be using. Wish me luck. XD

Also, I can't promise that this'll be updated all the time. But I'll do my best.

* * *

 **1 - Introduction**

 _"Hello there. If you're listening to this recording, my brothers and I are probably dead. By now I'm sure you've heard of us - the four people who saved New York. The ones who gave everything they had to protect the citizens of the state-sized nation. The ones with mutated bodies but human hearts._

 _"Or maybe the reports weren't so favorable. Maybe you heard that we were demons. Maybe you heard that we would snatch your children away in the dead of night. I'm sure it was something to that effect. There was always at least one nasty rumor floating around._

 _"Whatever the case may be, I'm here to tell you the absolute and utter truth, no holds barred. My name is Hamato Donatello. And this is what really happened the night our world went up in flames."_


	2. 2 - Complicated

**2 - Complicated**

The dojo was silent, the air still. It was a perfect setting for meditation.

Except Leo couldn't concentrate. He had been trying for three hours now, but it didn't seem to be working. Eventually he sighed and gave up, stretching his legs out in front of him. They ached a little from being in lotus position for so long but he ignored the pain.

The blue-banded ninja stood up and made his way into the kitchen, trying to figure out why he couldn't reach the astral plain. After making a cup of tea and sipping at it for a few minutes, he decided that his mind was too busy. There were so many thoughts spinning around; it was a small miracle that he had managed to just sit still for three hours.

 _Maybe this is how Mike feels, except on a constant basis._ Leo shuddered at the mere suggestion, much preferring peace and serenity over a noisy mind.

And speaking of his youngest brother, shouldn't there have been _some_ noise going on? It was far too quiet in the Lair for Leo's liking. He frowned again and set his nearly-full mug on the counter, making a roundabout check of the place his clan called home.

Donnie was hard at work in his lab and completely oblivious to the fact that his oldest brother was standing in the doorway. Judging by the grease marks on his face and the bright look in his eyes, he'd been going at it for hours now - which meant he wouldn't have a clue as to Mikey's whereabouts.

Raph was locked away in his bedroom again; Leo could hear his twin playing around with the old drum set Don scavenged and fixed up for him years ago. He wouldn't be of much help either.

Splinter was currently out at April's and had been for some time. It was their "story" day - ergo, the day to watch whatever trashy soaps the redheaded woman had recorded over the entire week. She and the rat master had bonded over their love of soap operas, which suited the others just fine. Leo would rather not have to sit through another rerun of "The Young and the Restless," thank you very much.

But if Splinter had been gone all day, and Donnie had been working, and Raph had been in his room, then nobody knew where Mikey was. And if Mikey was gone without leaving some sort of message, that meant one of two things.

First, he was fully intending to get into trouble and didn't want to get lectured for it.

Or second, he _was_ in trouble - through no fault of his own.

The longer Leo dwelt on the matter, the more likely it seemed that the first option was correct. After all, his orange-banded brother was always getting wrapped up in something, mainly because of his insatiable curiosity. Few things ever happened to Hamato Michelangelo that he didn't have a hand in.

And if Leo had learned anything about his brother over the years, it was that he would always turn up at the front door with a sheepish grin on his face, covered in scrapes and bruises or some indistinguishable debris and slime.

So Leo sighed, sat down on the couch, and waited.

* * *

He hadn't meant to fall asleep.

He was just so _tired_ from all of the recon and scavenging Donnie'd had them doing over the past few days, and he hadn't been getting enough sleep either because of the rising tension between their clan and the Foot. So when his body finally got the chance to relax into that soft, worn out couch, it automatically shut down.

The grinding of the Lair door had cobalt blue eyes snapping open. Leo was on his feet in seconds, fully prepared to release a long-overdue lecture. Then the light fell on his sibling's bruised and battered form and any plans for a lecture flew out the window.

Mikey swayed, reaching for the wall to support himself and missing by quite a few inches. One of his eyes was swollen shut. The other was glazed over with pain and unshed tears. "H-Hey, Leo," he whispered, drawing attention to the trail of blood that dripped from the corner of his mouth.

The leader stared in shock for a few seconds - and that was enough time for Mikey to lose his balance completely. Leo rushed forward and caught him before his head hit the concrete floor. "Hey, look at me. Stay with me, buddy. I need you to focus on my face. Okay?" But the glazed baby-blue was already closing. His breath was already getting shallower.

Leo screamed.

* * *

 _"What the shell happened?!"_

 _"I don't know! I've been in my lab for hours! Leo?"_

 _"I was trying to meditate and I realized that he wasn't around, so I sat and waited. Then he came in looking like this."_

 _"Somebody beat the living crap out of him, and yer tellin' me ya got no clue who it was?"_

 _"How am I supposed to know where he went if he didn't tell anyone?!"_

"Ugh...did someone get the number of the truck that hit me?"

Mikey's voice came out gravelly and thin, but it stopped the ensuing argument in its tracks. Three sets of eyes snapped to his marred face. The youngest turtle was surprised to see the wetness of Leo's blues.

"What happened, little brother?" Leo asked, so softly it was nearly impossible to hear. Almost as if he was afraid of the answer.

"...it's complicated..."

Raph exploded. "Whaddya mean, 'it's complicated'? We're mutant turtles livin' in the freakin' sewers under New York City! Can't get more complicated than that!"

Mikey had to agree, despite the fact that he was slightly shaken by his brother's anger - though deep down he knew that Raph was just worried. And when Raph got worried...well...he had an odd way of showing it.

"Look, Klunk got out into the tunnels when Sensei left, so I ran after him to try and catch him. I managed to grab him by the intersection of Fifth and Laird, but there were a couple PDs in the tunnel with us so I had to duck for cover. I overheard them talking about how their groups were getting big again over on the south side and I was gonna come back and let you know but somehow they heard me. I would've taken them down except one of them threw some blinding powder into my face. Then they beat me up."

The room fell silent for a long moment as the others digested that information. Purple Dragons in the sewers? How'd they get so close to the Lair? Why were the southern groups gathering steam? And how did they manage to get their grubby paws on blinding powder?

Raph finally spoke up. "...guess he wasn't kiddin' about th' whole 'complicated' thing."

 **A/N: Gonna stop it here. I don't want it to be too long, haha.**

 **So what'd you guys think of this chapter? Do you want me to keep going with the story? Sorry if I seem a little off my game - school's been interesting and it appears to be draining me of all creativity I possess. :\**

 **Please review.**


	3. 3 - Making History

_A/N: I was not expecting this big of a response on an idea that wasn't even half-baked...so an immense thank-you is due to everyone who's favorited, reviewed, and followed this book so far. I'd also like to thank the ghost readers out there. You guys help carry my stories as well - you just don't leave any evidence behind other than the read itself. ;)_

 **3 - Making History**

Exhausted after his long explanation, Mikey sagged back into the cot and closed his good eye. Leo sighed at just how banged-up his little brother truly was. It hadn't been evident to him until that moment - mostly because the orange-banded ninja was awake and talking.

And, judging by the worried expression on Donnie's face, that was a miracle in itself.

"How bad is it?" Raph asked once they were certain Mikey had fallen asleep.

The resident genius shook his head. "Of the twelve ribs he has, four are broken and three are bruised. His collarbone is cracked, along with his left wrist. His left shoulder was just dislocated, so I already fixed that, but he also managed to sprain his ankle somehow. There was some shrapnel embedded in his thigh and forearm - I'm assuming from bullet ricochets, since his mask smelled like gunpowder. Add all that to a long list of bruises, contusions, general cuts and scratches, and his black eye and you have the entire injury description. Well, assuming he doesn't have any internal injuries, which appears to be correct so far."

Leo felt Raph tense beside him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't do anything stupid," he cautioned quietly. "Until we know exactly why the PDs were in the tunnels and how they got their hands on blinding powder, we should lay low."

"And how long is that gonna take?" the hothead snapped. "How long do I hafta sit here an' watch my own brother struggle fer breath? How long 'til I can go out there an' take down the scumbags that hurt him?"

"It's not just about the powder or why they were in the tunnels," Donnie interrupted. "I want to know how they managed to injure Mike that badly. There's no way the Dragons we know did all that damage."

"So they're workin' with someone. So what?"

"Raph, think about it for two seconds. Who else is powerful enough to take us down?"

"...ya want people from this dimension or..."

Donnie sighed. "The Foot, Raphael. The Foot are working with the Purple Dragons."

"But why?" Leo murmured. "They've never worked well together before. What do they stand to gain now?"

Before anyone could answer that question, Raph's shell cell rang. He picked it up and put it to his ear. "Yeah?"

 _"Raph, it's Casey. Ya might wanna take a look at Channel 6 News. There's somethin' on there ya need ta see."_

* * *

The footage was grainy, shot from a cellphone, but it was enough. And the consequences were really, really bad.

All it took was one glimpse of a green-skinned, orange-masked body and the blood drained from all three ninjas' faces. Raph swore under his breath, throwing his phone down on the sofa and leaving the room. Donnie dropped his head into his hands, sinking down onto the floor. Leo said nothing. After all, what was there to say?

What _could_ he say?

 _"...an alien?"_ the reporter was asking. _"Something photoshopped, perhaps? Or is this real evidence of something not quite human living among us?"_

 _"It isn't out of the realm of possibility, June,"_ the news anchor replied. _"There have been other reports of odd-looking 'people' sighted around New York."_

 _"But why haven't we seen these creatures before? Where could they be hiding?"_

 _"I'm not sure. But the NYPD has confirmed the fact that it will be actively searching for the so-called mutants, stating in their latest press release that the mutants are a danger to society and-"_

The living room went silent as Leo flicked off the television. He dropped the remote to the coffee table and stared at the blank TV screen for quite some time.

"...what do we do now?" Donnie asked eventually. His voice was quiet - and for the first time in his life, he sounded completely unsure.

"It won't take them long to figure out we're under the city, not in it. We need to get the shell out of dodge before that happens."

"As injured as Mikey is, I'm not sure I want to move him right now. Give it a few more days-"

"Donnie, we don't have a few more days if the NYPD is after us. Are his injuries life-threatening?"

"Well...not really. But it'll cause him a lot of pai-"

"That's a sacrifice we'll have to make," the leader replied softly. "I'm sorry, Don. I know you want what's best for Mikey - I do too. But right now, what's best for him is keeping him alive and out of scientist hands. You know that's what would happen. And if that means he's in pain for a while then he's in pain for a while. I'm not going to sit around twiddling my thumbs while they trap us down here in the sewers."

Don's jaw clenched and he stared at the ground. "Fine."

Leo's expression softened. "We'll keep him as comfortable as possible. I promise."

And despite his anger with the situation, Donnie found himself to be content with that. Because when Leo made a promise, he kept it - no matter what happened.

 **A/N: Yeah...wasn't sure how to end that. But hopefully you guys are still enjoying the story.**

 **Please review.**


	4. 4 - Rivalry

**Chapter 4 - Rivalry**

As Leo made the phone call that would hopefully be the solution to getting "the shell out of dodge," as he'd so gracefully put it, Donnie sat on the couch. Fidgeting. When he was a kid, he'd always had a tendency to bounce his right knee when he was anxious about something. Apparently, he never fully outgrew the habit.

Equally apparently, Leo knew what that habit meant. The blue-banded leader offered his sibling a warm smile. It was meant to calm him down, Don knew.

It didn't work this time.

"I know, April. I'm sorry if it's not a good time, but- yeah, he'd be okay for the ride out to...well, Kirby could always come with us if he really wanted. I know you wouldn't be comfortable leaving him here. Yeah, Casey would be coming too."

At that sentence, Donnie's back stiffened. He had known that the hockey-loving vigilante would most likely be coming on the trip, but had decided not to focus on that particular fact. He still hadn't quite forgiven the boy for ruining his chances with April - and he had a sneaking suspicion that Casey felt the same way.

But if it meant that they were safe - that _Mikey_ was safe - he could put up with it.

The genius turtle snapped back to the present just as Leo was finishing up his conversation. "Okay. See you tomorrow. _Arigato, Imoto._ "

He slipped the phone back into his belt and sank onto the couch, putting his head in his hands and breathing a long sigh of relief.

"Well?"

"We'll leave tomorrow. That'll give us enough time to gather our supplies and make sure the Party Wagon is ready."

 _To transport a critically injured person,_ he didn't add. He also didn't say that it would be mostly Donnie prepping their vehicle - after all, only Raph came close to knowing _half_ of what Don knew. Odds were good that they'd just be in the way.

So the task fell on his lanky shoulders. Again. But he sucked it up, because his oldest brother just looked so tired and stressed and worried. And though Don may not have agreed with him, it didn't mean that he couldn't lighten the load some.

"I'll go check on Mike and see how he's doing."

"Okay. And Donnie?"

The genius paused on his way out the door. "Yeah?"

"Thanks," Leo whispered, gazing at his brother with a rare look of love and affection on his weary face.

Donnie swallowed past the lump in his throat and blinked away what were _definitely_ not tears. "You're welcome."

* * *

April and her father were at the Lair bright and early the next morning with Casey in tow. All of the necessary gear had been packed already, so all that was left was to carry Mikey out into the Party Wagon.

It was a horrible experience for everyone.

With each step his brothers took, the injured turtle winced in pain. He never screamed or complained - but the small whimpers that escaped his lips told them all just how much he was hurting.

Leo's jaw clenched and his face visibly paled at the knowledge that he was causing pain for a family member. Raph kept swearing under his breath, his eyes uncharacteristically bright from a sheen of tears. After a few minutes that felt like hours, they maneuvered Mikey into the vehicle and climbed in themselves.

The blue-banded leader blew out a long breath and slumped against the wall. "Let's go," he called out to Casey. The teen nodded and pressed his foot to the floor. Then they were shooting out through the tunnels, headed straight for Upstate New York.

* * *

It was a few hours later that Leo was woken up by a smooth-skinned head being placed on his shoulder. He glanced over with bleary eyes to see Mikey wide-awake and staring him full in the face. His baby blues were clear for the first time since he'd been put on morphine, which kind of worried his oldest brother, but he didn't seem to be in pain at the moment.

"Hey, Leo," the freckled turtle rasped in a quiet voice, because everyone except Casey was asleep - and the raven-haired teen had earbuds in, so he couldn't hear them anyway.

"Mikey, what are you doing up? I thought Donnie gave you medicine for the trip?"

"He did, but I didn't take it all." Mikey offered a cheeky grin - the first since that fateful night - and rolled his eyes a little. "I was getting bored of sleeping all the time. 'Sides...we need to talk, mano-a-mano. Er... I guess it would be turtle-a-turtle, actually."

Dread settled in Leo's stomach and he looked away. He wasn't _nervous,_ exactly, but - no, strike that. He _was_ nervous. Nervous that his brother would accuse him, would blame him for everything, would confess that he hated him.

He wouldn't be able to take it if that happened.

"Mike-"

"Don't do that. Don't _Mike_ me. I know what that tone means. You think this is all your fault don't you? You think I'm going to blame you for it."

"...aren't you?"

"Aw, Leo...shell. Really? You really think that you...why? Why would you blame yourself for a stupid decision that _I_ made?"

"Because if I had been paying attention to everything, then I would've known you were going out, and maybe I could've stopped you from getting hurt."

"Yeah," Mikey agreed, shaking his head. " _Maybe._ But _Kraang_ , Leo, you can't watch everything twenty-four-seven. You just can't. It's not possible. And anyway, when have you ever been able to stop me from doing something I was really determined to do?"

 _True,_ the eldest conceded mentally. "Mikey, it's not that. Well, it's partially that, but... you could've died." The word was harsh and tasted bitter on his tongue. He swallowed. "You almost did. You're injured enough right now that you won't be moving properly for months. And if I had just looked for you _sooner-"_

"Stop. Please, Leo, stop. Look at me." Mikey gently grabbed his sibling's chin and turned his face until their eyes met. "It's not. Your. Fault. I promise. You're not superhuman, dude - even though sometimes you come pretty damn close. But Leo... I'm okay. I'm here. And I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. Okay? So stop worrying."

Leo stared at him with watery cobalt eyes for a long time, saying absolutely nothing. Then a strangled sob escaped his mouth and he buried his face in the younger turtle's neck. "I'm so sorry," he whispered.

"It's okay..." was the soft, gentle response. "Everything is going to be okay now."

Oh, if only he'd been right.

 **A/N: I know, I know. Cliffhanger again. Sorry.**

 **Please review!**


	5. 5 - Unbreakable

**5 - Unbreakable**

The Party Wagon pulled into the farmhouse driveway at six forty-five the next morning, still under cover of darkness. Leo had been awake ever since his conversation with Mikey, who was himself asleep on his big brother's shoulder, so he gently nudged the others awake with his foot.

"We're here."

Raph and Donnie sat up immediately. Dark bags hung under their eyes, giving voice to the little rest they'd gotten in the past few days - Leo was sure that he didn't look much better. "Let's get Mikey inside," he whispered. They nodded and wearily stood up as Casey opened the side door to let them out.

As soon as they started lifting their injured brother, his eyes flew open and he cried out in pain. Donnie gritted his teeth and stepped forward with a syringe. "I'm giving you some more morphine," he said, gently but firmly. "It'll take effect soon, but we have to move you right now. Okay?"

Mikey whimpered but shook his head. "No more morphine, D." He stared up at Leo with pain-glazed eyes. "If he doesn't need it when he's hurt, I don't either."

Despite himself, the leader felt a surge of warmth. Tears pricked at his own eyes and he blinked them away.

Raph crouched so he was eye-level with the youngest. "This ain't the time for yer stupid hero worship," he snapped. "Yer in pain and we gotta move ya up stairs. Take the damn morphine shot!"

"No."

"Don, tell him to-" Raph began, but Leo cut him off.

"If that's what he wants, that's what will happen. Now let's get going. It's freezing and I don't want to be out here any longer than I have to be."

He could feel the weight of the fiery green glare on him, but he ignored it and bent to whisper in Mikey's ear.

"You know that this is really going to hurt."

"I know," Mike whispered back. "But I'm not gonna break."

Leo wisely chose not to point out that he was technically already broken. Instead, he gently slid his arms under his brother's shoulders. Raph finally broke his glare and reached to hook his arms under the kid's knees.

It took seven long, painful minutes to get Mikey to the upstairs bedroom that had long ago been dubbed the "Get Well Room." To his credit, the injured mutant didn't once complain. Not a single groan slipped past his lips - but the beads of sweat on his forehead gave testimony to how much pain he was in. They placed him on the bed and Donnie and Raph went back downstairs to help carry in supplies, but Leo stayed behind for a few minutes longer.

Mikey reached over and grabbed his oldest brother's hand, commanding his attention. He offered a real, if weak, smile. "Thanks, Leo."

The blue-banded ninja smiled in return and pressed a rare kiss to his forehead. "I'm so proud of you," he whispered. "I'm so insanely proud of you and I can never tell you that enough."

 _You don't have to,_ Mike wanted to say, but the words lodged in his throat like the lump that had suddenly appeared. There was a beat of silence and Leo swallowed, blinking against the prickling feeling that was back in his eyes.

"I'm gonna go help the others," he said in a shaky voice. "I'll check on you when we're done. Get some rest."

While his footsteps faded away down the hall, Mikey snuggled into his blankets, content despite the pain. He was safe and warm and happy. And yeah, Raph might've been ticked off, but Leo was _proud_ of him - had actually said so.

So as his baby blues drifted shut, he smiled softly to himself. What could be better than this?

 **A/N: Wanted a bit of fluff to (a) help me get back into everything, and (b) ease us into the drama that's coming soon.** **Review? Please?**


	6. 6 - Obsession

_Obsessions: Thoughts, images, or ideas that won't go away, are unwanted, and cause extreme distress._

 **6 - Obsession**

Muscles quivering from exertion. Skin slick with sweat that cooled almost instantly in the frigid air. Eyes unseeing. Thoughts a thousand miles away.

 _"Raph, did you want to play some video games with me?"_

 _"Not now, Mike, m'busy! Go bug someone else."_

 _"...Donnie, could I help-"_

 _"This is delicate work, Mikey- I don't need you underfoot, okay?"_

 _"...Leo, I...I'm gonna go out for a run, okay?"_

 _Silence._

A pained cry tore from his throat and he leapt forward, toned body moving at incredibly fast speed as he pushed himself through another round of the most challenging katas he knew. The exercise kept him from thinking too much about it, about what might have happened if his little brother hadn't made it home.

But Leo had been at it for hours already, and finally his exhausted body just couldn't take it anymore. He collapsed onto the hard ground and dug his fingers into the dirt as his shoulders began to tremble. Hot tears spilled down his cheeks and he bit his lip to keep from screaming.

Mikey left and none of them even realized it. Mikey could've _died_ and they wouldn't have known. They were all "too busy" to spend time with their baby brother, and that's what landed them in this mess in the first place.

The orange-banded turtle hadn't woken up once in the forty-eight hours they'd been at the farmhouse, and Leo was beginning to understand what Raph felt like after Shredder's attack so long ago.

"I'm sorry," he whispered to no one, his voice hoarse and almost unintelligible. "I'm so sorry."

 **TMNT/TMNT/TMNT**

When Leonardo woke, it was to a clear, cold night and a beautiful starry sky. But the beauty was dulled by the sorrow in his bloodshot ocean eyes. He sighed as he stood up, wincing at the stiffness of his muscles from the wintry air. Twenty-five years old and he already felt like he was eighty.

The turtle padded silently across the yard and into the barn, where he found the lights off, save for one emergency lantern. _Donnie must've actually gone to bed for once._

Too tired to revel in the small victory, Leo climbed into the hayloft and collapsed in the sweet-smelling straw he found there. It would keep him warm enough until morning truly came - if he even attempted to sneak into the house now, the old floorboards would creak loud enough to wake the entire household. And the conversation that would follow was _not_ one that he wanted to have right now.

He closed his tired eyes for the second time that day, hoping that sleep would swiftly claim him - and that for once, maybe he would have no dreams or nightmares.

He was never that lucky.

 **TMNT/TMNT/TMNT**

 _"If you behave yourself, I'll make this as painless as possible."_

 _A small whimper. The stench of fear and copper burned in Leo's nostrils and he gagged as more red splashed across the floor. They had blindfolded him and tied him down onto a table, then pressed hot knives into his skin, instantly cauterizing the wounds they created. The pain was almost unbearable, and he could feel the lifeblood leaving his body._

 _But this red wasn't his. This was Mikey's._

 _The youngest's screams had faded long ago as his vocal cords finally gave out from the strain of constant use. Now all that Mikey could do was shudder and whimper with each pass of the torturous instruments across his body. His crystal-blue eyes were rolled up into his head and his mouth worked silently - in prayer or pleading, he wasn't sure anymore._

 _Leo reached out as another pitiful whimper reached his ears, but no matter how far he stretched, he couldn't get to his brother. His hands hit something hard and cold and rough - a wall. There was a wall between them._

 _Leo's muttered pleas turned into begging and then to full-on roars as he bashed at the wall. "Mikey- Mikey, Mikey please! Hold on, little brother, I'm trying-"_

His fist connected with something, and that something gave way in a gush of coppery heat. _"Fuck!"_ someone swore, the word muffled and thickened.

"Leo! Leo, calm down, it's okay!"

Leonardo's eyes snapped open and he came face-to-face with a worried Donatello and a bleeding, cursing Raphael. His breath caught in his throat and he scrambled backwards, deeper into the hay, trying to put some distance between himself and the others.

"Donnie," he whispered.

"What happened?"

The leader swallowed back tears and dropped his gaze. "N-Nothing."

Raph fixed irritated green eyes on him. " _Nothing_ didn't bust my fucking _nose,_ Leonardo," the hothead snapped through the hand that was pressed to his face. Leo flinched and his twin felt instantly guilty, but didn't apologize for being harsh. Those green eyes softened though and he ran his unoccupied hand over Leo's shoulder. "Nightmare?" he guessed - accurately, judging by the flinch he once again received by way of answer.

"Wanna talk about it?" Don offered.

The blue-clad turtle shook his head and tried to ignore the way his siblings were looking at him.

"Mikey was worried when you didn't come in last night."

"I lost track of time," Leo replied quietly. It wasn't a lie.

Raph finally managed to stem the flow of blood in his nose and sank down into the hay, wiping his reddened hand on his thigh. "Y'know ya ain't alone, right? Ya got all of us behind ya, and we'll catch ya if ya fall."

"Who does Mikey have?" the blue-banded turtle asked, so quietly that the others almost missed it.

Green and brown met in a look of surprise and dismay as Raph and Don suddenly understood what they'd missed all this time.

The barn grew quiet again, and no more tears rolled down Leonardo's cheeks - but inside, he was breaking.


	7. 7 - Eternity

_A/N: Dedicated to BrightLotusMoon._

 **7 - Eternity**

Leonardo closed his eyes and breathed in the scent of pine and wood smoke. Crickets chirped in a constant mantra outside, a great contrast to Raphael's mutterings.

The hothead had been pacing back and forth for the past hour, either trying to devise a plan to stop the end of mutantkind as they knew it, or trying to tamp down on the helpless anger that had been bubbling up since they left the city.

Donatello, for his part, was out in the barn trying to make crutches for their injured sibling, and Casey and April were out grocery shopping with Mr. O'Neil.

And so Leo was alone, keeping a constant vigil with the youngest of them all.

He'd just started to doze off when a thin voice broke through the air. "Leo?"

Cobalt eyes snapped open; the leader was across the room in seconds. "You're awake! Hang on, I'm gonna get Donnie-"

Michelangelo's cold hand gripped Leo's wrist and he flinched at the contact. "Just you," Mikey rasped. "Need to- have to ask you a question."

Dread rose in the blue-banded ninja's gut. He hadn't spoken to his sibling since the first day they were here, and he couldn't imagine what was coming.

Nothing could've prepared him for the words that graced Mikey's lips. "D'you believe in Heaven?"

Leo blinked, completely unsure if he'd heard him correctly. "I...what?"

"Y'know, not even, like, pearly gates and rolling green hills, necessarily. Just..." The bedridden mutant huffed out a laugh, seeming to deflate. "...just in _something._ "

The room fell silent for a long while after that, until Leo dared to voice the question on his mind. "Is this about the whole news situation?"

His brother laughed again - but this time, the sound was bitter and had a cold edge to it. "Of course it is. I'm just wondering, y'know, if there's anything _after_ all of this, because this really isn't how I pictured my life ending. I mean, I always thought I'd go out in a blaze of glory, not-" His voice broke and he fisted his good hand in the blankets. "Whatever. It's stupid."

"It's not stupid. It took me by surprise, is all. And to answer your original question, yeah. I do."

Ice-blue met cobalt like the clash of waves on a glacier, and the older turtle almost flinched at the absolute shock in that expression. "Really?"

"I mean, not in Heaven, but in an afterlife, yeah. I'm Buddhist, remember?"

Mikey hadn't remembered, not really - getting the everliving snot kicked out of you could do that, he supposed. But Leo was giving him a knowing grin, and despite the pain in every cell in his body, the ridiculousness of it all finally struck him. A giggle slipped past his lips before he could stop it, and soon both of them were laughing like their world wasn't balanced on the edge of a knife (or maybe because it was).

Eventually, Leo straightened up and wiped tears from his eyes. The mirth faded from his expression as he leaned forward to press his forehead to his sibling's. "You'll make it through this, Mike," he said quietly. "It may not happen soon, but you're coming out of this in one piece. I promise you that."

"How can you be so sure?"

And when their gazes locked again, Mikey was the one who shivered. There was so much seriousness, so much heaviness, in those once-youthful eyes. "One: you deserve it, and so much more. And two: you're my little brother, and you've got me and a shell of a lot of other people ready to fight Hell itself on your behalf. Okay?"

"Only on one condition."

"What's that?"

"No unnecessary risks, either by you or Raph. No premature blazes of glory for you two, alright? If and when you go down swinging, we _all_ go down swinging."

They shared one last long, knowing look before Mikey extended his right hand. There was a beat of silence before Leo took it and shook not once, but twice.

The younger turtle blew out a long breath and grinned. "Good."

"Yeah?" Leo searched his brother's freckled face for any signs of darkness, but found none.

"Yeah." And Mikey meant it.

 **A/N: Wasn't sure how to wrap that chapter up, but I hope I did an okay job.**

 **Depression is hitting a bit harder lately, mainly because of so many changes happening in my life right now, and my attention span is iffy even _before_ depression. Heh. **

**Anway, please leave me a review. It'll really cheer me up.**


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